Dawning
by GoldenUsagi
Summary: A Dawn's memories fic, centering on her interaction with Spike. Starts in Becoming. Giles wasn't the only one Angelus took that night, and Spike decides she'd be the perfect bargaining chip for striking a deal with the Slayer. Continues to seasons 3 and 4
1. Chapter 1

Everything was going according to plan.

Angelus watched as two minions threw Giles on the floor. He was still unconscious, but they would fix that soon enough. In the mean time—

"Oh, the Watcher."

He turned as Spike rolled in from the next room. "He'll tell me what I need. I've learned that Rupert here always comes through."

"So then? Let's wake him up."

Angelus shrugged. "Let him sleep it off." He grinned. "I've got _one_ more thing to get."

.

.

* * *

Spike was sitting in a room just off the mansion's main room when the front door slammed open. Angelus strolled through with a stupid grin on his face and something slung over his shoulder. Somewhat curious, Spike wheeled his chair through the archway.

Angelus came to a stop and dumped the something on the floor. After it rolled and attempted to sit up, Spike recognized it as the Slayer's kid sister. Well, that always was Angelus's style, wasn't it?

He glanced at her once before looking at Angelus. "What, is this it, then? Not too impressive."

"She'll make a good time. And one last message. If Buffy was rattled by that teacher—well…" he trailed off, chuckling.

The girl, though not restrained in any way, had yet to move from where Angelus had deposited her. Her panicked eyes, however, were quickly glancing around, searching for escape or help.

She was what, eleven, twelve?

"Not exactly my type," Angelus continued, "but we'll have to make do, won't we?" He grinned conspiratorially at Spike and then glanced at Dru, who had come in and was kneeling over the girl and going on about poppies and dolls.

"I mean, she was at a friend's house across town. They thought she'd be out of the way there, I guess. Buffy, Buffy, you're too predictable." He grinned. "Wasn't hard. Throw some eggs, a little toilet paper, make like a prank, and little girls stick their heads out to see who wants them. So innocent."

Spike looked back in her direction and something occurred to him.

Slowly he smiled behind his teeth, his eyes fixed on the girl.

* * *

"Don't make a fuss, and I'll only hurt you," he had whispered in her ear.

Terrified, Dawn had complied, thinking of Sarah who still stood uncertainly on her porch, baffled as to how Dawn had disappeared from less than a foot away. "Dawn?" she'd called.

Not that Dawn could have gotten away from him, even with a fuss. He had easily thrown her over his shoulder and disappeared into the night with her.

Not long after, they had entered a building and he'd unceremoniously dropped her on the stone floor. She'd been vaguely aware of another man in the room; he was asleep on the floor. But what had caught her attention were the three.

Angel had stood in the center, smirking, flanked by a woman, and a man sitting in a chair.

Dawn had known with a sickening feeling that there was no way out.

Angel had bragged and threatened. The dark woman had called her a dolly and asked if she could have a little sister. The blond one, however, hadn't spoken, but had merely stared at her, his gaze never relenting. Like a cat watching a mouse.

Or a vampire watching its next meal.

Vampires.

Figured that Buffy's crazy boyfriend was one of them. She had always known, just _known_, that there was something about Angel she didn't like.

Oh, she'd known about the Slaying. It was a sister secret, and the one thing that she had never threatened to tell Mom about. It was too important, too important for grownups to know.

Buffy hadn't, however, told her that Angel was a vampire.

Dawn hadn't blamed her, really. Since the move to Sunnydale, Buffy had actually made friends, friends who were in the know. So she had less time to swap secrets with her little sister.

So she hadn't known—not until she'd had to.

Not until Buffy had warned her that he wasn't to be invited in, had gone bad—nothing she hadn't told her about vampires before. Dawn really hadn't thought it was a big deal. She'd only seen Angel once or twice, mainly the night that Buffy and he were 'studying' and had been chased back to the house by the three vampires.

Buffy had said that since then, Angel had been dis-invited. So Dawn hadn't really worried about it.

Which had clearly been a big mistake.

Suddenly she was pulled up, as Angel was apparently done talking. He dragged her roughly to a room, tied her up, and then left, a bounce in his step.

Moments later, she heard screams. She thought of the man in the other room.

Dawn took in her surroundings, looking for possible escape. And trying not to panic. She was unsuccessful in both.

For starters, she was tied to a bed.

Technically, she was sitting in the floor, but she was still tied to the bedpost of the bed. There was something just _wrong_ about being tied to a bed. Something she didn't fully understand, but knew was bad. The sort of something you pick up from movies and friends.

It seemed like she was left for hours, maybe she was. Maybe not.

Another scream echoed down the stone hallways. The kind of scream you scream when you're trying not to scream. She shuddered.

The handle of the door twitched, and Dawn looked up quickly.

It was the blond vampire.

He shut the door behind him. She glanced down and backed up against the bed, curling in on herself. She heard his footsteps as he approached; the leather of his coat creaked as he knelt down.

What now?

Dinner? Something worse?

She choked against her gag. She knew her face was already stained from crying, and the tears threatened to spill over once again.

He sat there for a moment and then forced her chin up with his hand. She tried to pull away, but he wouldn't let her. His eyes were so blue, she noticed.

"You," he said, "are exactly what I need."

He pulled a knife from under the mattress and quickly slit the ropes binding her to the bedpost.

They kept _knives_ under the bed?

Without a word, he pulled her to her feet and dragged her to the door. Dawn wasn't sure if she should struggle or not. On the one hand, she was leaving the room. On the other, she had no idea where he was taking her or what he wanted.

She pulled back, though it did little good. However, he barely seemed to notice, as he had also paused and was looking expectantly down the hallway.

A moment or two passed.

Another scream.

He flung her under his arm like a sack of flour and bolted. Stealthily bolted.

She knew they were outside when she saw the orange city lights and heard the sound of cars in the distance. After a few minutes, he let go of her. Her shoes hit the pavement but Dawn fumbled, and she found herself collapsed at his feet.

At least he hadn't dropped her on her head.

He hauled her to stand by the front of her shirt and reached for her gag, like he was going to undo it. He paused.

"If you bloody well scream, I'll knock you out. Got it?"

She gave a minuscule nod.

He snapped a knife out of his pocket and cut the ropes from her wrists and the gag from her mouth. After frowning down at her a minute, he seemed to see her for the first time.

A quick hand rubbed over her cheeks, and he made a half-hearted and completely clueless attempt to straighten her hair. Almost as an afterthought, he ran his hand around her neck, checking.

Apparently satisfied, he nodded to himself.

"Can't have the Slayer thinking I did wrong by you."

Dawn found her voice. "Slayer?"

"You, O bite-sized one, are my ticket to big sis."

"B-Buffy?"

"Yeah, Buffy," he said, grabbing her arm in bruising grip and dragging her behind him. She quickly caught up to walk beside him, but he didn't let go. "Didn't know she was the Slayer?"

"No, I knew."

"And?"

"She won't talk you."

He jerked her arm. Painfully. "Watch your mouth. I could take you back to Angelus. Or let Dru have her way with you."

"Are you like the good vampire?"

He laughed. And again with the painfulness on the arm. "I'm not insane, which is more than can be said for them. No excuse for Dru, but Angelus— The Slayer? Yeah, she'll talk. To get her bitty Buffy back, she'll even listen."

He pulled her through the darkened streets, and it took her a moment to realize that they were heading in the direction of her house.

He knew where she lived.

* * *

.

.  
Buffy hurried away from the scene. She really shouldn't have knocked out the cop, but she hadn't seen an alternative. There was too much going down for her to be arrested. She needed to go home, call the hospital, get some weapons and regroup.

She was several blocks from her house when she felt the vampire.

.

.

* * *

He stopped suddenly as her sister simultaneously rounded the corner.

"Hello, cutie."

Buffy groaned and raised her stake. "I so do not have time for you."

He took a half step back, holding one of his hands up.

"Hey, white flag here. Best of intentions and all."

"We're mortal enemies, we don't get time out." She readied to attack.

"He's got your Watcher," the vampire announced loudly, getting her attention. "And I've got your sister." He pulled Dawn out from behind him.

Buffy's eyes grew huge in terror and then narrowed in anger. "Spike, you let her go."

"All right," he said indifferently, pushing Dawn in Buffy's direction. She stumbled, and Buffy leapt forward to catch her.

"Ohmygod! Dawn, are you okay? How did—when did—?" She looked at him furiously. "What did you do to her?"

"Nothing," Dawn heard herself saying. "Angel took me, he brought me back."

Buffy looked at the vampire, who shrugged, his hands in his coat pockets.

"Thank you," she said without feeling. "Dawn, get behind me so I can stake him."

"Buffy!"

"Hey! I brought the Little Bit back—in one piece—and that's all I get?"

"What. Do. You. Want?"

He shifted slightly, actually looking somewhat embarrassed. "I want to save the world."

* * *

They headed back toward their house uneasily, Buffy keeping her on one side and the vampire on the other. Dawn stole glances at him as they walked and he argued with Buffy. For all that he seemed to be coming with them, he and Buffy hadn't actually agreed on anything yet.

"—may be sucked into hell, and you want my help cause your girlfriend's a big ho? Well, let me take this opportunity to _not_ care!"

"I can't fight them both alone, and neither can you!"

Buffy turned and slugged him with her free hand.

He hit her back, looking amused as Buffy was thrown off balance and Dawn was sent sprawling onto the sidewalk.

Dawn found him pulling her up by the arm before she could stand, seemingly for no other reason than it annoyed Buffy. "Now look what you did," he chided her.

Buffy glared at him and snatched Dawn back.

"I hate you."

"And I'm all you've got."

It was at this moment that their mother drove up.

"Buffy?" she cried, leaping from the car. "_Where_ have you been? Are you okay? _What_ is going on? The police were here— Why is Dawn with you? And who is this man?"

What followed was a completely pathetic attempt on Buffy's part to convince her mother that they were in a band. Honestly. Dawn had no experience with sneaking out, but you'd think that after being the Slayer for two years, Buffy would be better at lying by now.

The vampire just seemed amused by it all, only joining in when Buffy shot him a withering glare.

She had just about pulled it off, though (note to self, Mom is extremely gullible), when a vampire leapt out of the bushes.

It was all over then.

* * *

Buffy took charge afterward, ushering them all inside. "Come in. Spike, sit. Dawn, upstairs. Mom, I'll explain. Please?"

"I think I'd like a drink," she said, her voice shaking. "Would anyone else like a drink?"

The vampire grinned.

Buffy glared at him. "Do I even need to say it?"

"Hey, didn't take a nip out of the Bit, did I?"

Buffy pointed to a chair.

She went into the kitchen, Mom following behind.

Dawn stayed on the stairs, watching as he awkwardly settled into the chair Buffy had directed him to. She could hear voices in the kitchen, though she couldn't make out what they were saying. Several moments later Mom came back out, a glass in her hand.

She sat down on the couch without thinking about it, looking a moment later as if she'd much rather not have, but was too polite to get up again. Glancing nervously around, she noticed Dawn.

"Dawn! Upstairs!"

Dawn stood and bolted without a word. She closed her door, and then crept back to the top of the railing, lying down flat on her stomach.

She listened as they made a deal. He would help Buffy kill Angel. He and the nutjob would get to skip town.

Mom kept interrupting.

Dawn risked a glance under the bottom of the railing.

"If Giles dies, she dies."

He nodded and was gone.

Buffy and Mom came into the entryway, and Dawn crept back, having no trouble hearing the words as they argued. They walked into the kitchen, voices disappearing under the landing.

The sound of glass shattering made up Dawn's mind, and she slowly crept down the stairs.

Mom was angry, and Buffy was near tears as her voice pitched higher and higher. She was lonely, she was sad, she hadn't chosen to do this, she would love to be normal, but she couldn't. And she had to go.

Now.

A crash.

"You walk out of this house, don't even think about coming back!"

She didn't even slam the door on her way out.

Dawn heard the sound of crying a moment later. She went back to her room, crawling under the covers.

* * *

.

.

It had been easier than Spike thought it would be.

Drusilla guilty looked up and ran her hand over the Watcher's face once more. "Sorry, I was in the moment."

Angelus leaned back and smirked. "I'm going to go celebrate before we open hell, I think. See you in an hour or so."

"Ooh, can I come, pretty please?"

"Not this time, Dru. I need some 'alone time.'"

Angelus sauntered down the mansion hallway.

Spike waited for it. It didn't take ten seconds. There was a roar and the sound of furniture breaking.

Angelus came storming back down the hallway and into the main room.

Spike grinned.

"YOU!" He stopped in front of Spike's chair, towering over him. "What did you do? WHERE is she?"

"You bring the only live thing I've seen in a week in here and you wonder where she went? Sorry, mate, but you haven't exactly been regular on the feeding. A vamp's got to eat, you know."

Angelus backhanded Spike so hard that the chair tipped over and sent him sprawling. "She wasn't for you!" He landed a kick in the ribs.

"Hard to tell," Spike sputtered. "What the hell does it matter anyway? A few hours and they'll all be dead."

"What did you do with her?"

"Rolled out, left the body where the Slayer would see."

"Well, at least you got one thing right." Angelus kicked Spike again. Then he reached out and grabbed Dru to him. "Looks like you get to come after all."

Spike watched as the pair walked out of the room.

After a few minutes had passed and he was sure that they were occupied, he stood up and got back in his chair. The Watcher, the only possible witness, was passed out again.

Spike settled in the chair.

Now all he had to do was wait.

* * *

.

.

.

Spike took the southern exit, determined to put as much distance between him and the Hellmouth as possible.

Dru had regained consciousness and was currently curled up in the backseat—pouting, pissed off, and not speaking to him.

He idly wondered whether Angelus had killed the Slayer.

Oh, well.

Spike turned up the radio.


	2. Chapter 2

When Dawn woke up the next morning, she saw the clock and panicked. It was 9:17. She was beyond late for school.

Dawn flew down the stairs. Why hadn't Mom or Buffy woken her up?

Buffy—

As if a wave washed over her, she suddenly remembered everything that had happened the night before. Buffy. Angel. The vampires. Saving the world.

She stopped mid-stride in the hallway.

"You don't have to go to school today," came Mom's voice. "I already called."

She was still in her bathrobe, sitting in the living room. Right in the center of the couch, staring straight ahead just like she had the night before.

Dawn's eyes slid to the right, half expecting to see the blond vampire—Spike—in the wicker chair. He wasn't there, of course.

"Where's Buffy?" she asked. "She didn't—she isn't—?"

"She left."

"What? When?" Dawn found herself sitting down on the couch.

"Sometime early this morning. She left a note."

"She's okay? Why did she leave? What did it say?"

"A lot of things. Nothing. She said she was sorry, but she just couldn't do it anymore. I didn't know—and after everything that happened last night—" Mom was on the verge of tears, she realized. "—I should have listened more, tried to understand. But how could I? _How_? Everything that happened makes no sense—and then I said—" Suddenly she broke off and looked at Dawn. "Did you know?"

"Some of it," she said quietly. "About the Slaying. But not the whole Angel thing. You wouldn't have believed me," she rushed, "and Buffy made me promise not to tell."

"Angel," she said. "Last night, Buffy said he took you." She paused. "Oh honey, I'm sorry! You must have been so scared—you aren't hurt, are you?"

Dawn shook her head. "No, Mom. Really. It was scary, but nothing happened."

Relief washed over her features as she pulled Dawn into a hug. "I'm so glad you're safe. And we'll figure this out. I'm sure Buffy will call soon, or—"

Dawn flinched, breaking the hug and moving back because of the sudden pain in her arm. Frowning, she pulled up her sleeve to find a horribly dark, hand shaped bruise just above her elbow.

Mom gasped.

"Did Angel do that?" she asked.

Dawn paused.

"Yeah," she finally said.

He hadn't.

It had been Spike, as he'd dragged her down the street, shaken her when she annoyed him. She wasn't sure why she should care, or why she lied about it.

Dawn sighed to herself. Now she'd have to wear long sleeves to school, or people would think she came from an abusive home or something. Though school was only for another week or so, it was hot outside.

She shook her head. She had narrowly escaped from vampires, and here she was worrying about what to wear.

"You want some pancakes?" Mom said, pulling her out of her thoughts. "Anything? Special breakfast for my baby coming right up."

Dawn nodded, and together they went into the kitchen.

* * *

Buffy's Watcher was here.

It was several days later, and there had been no word from Buffy. Mom was coping by clinging to the hope that she could come back or call at any time.

Dawn knew better.

That first day at home, the morning after Buffy had left, she had opened up her diary to find her own note from Buffy.

_I'm sorry. I love you,  
Buffy_

That wasn't an 'I'll be back in a few days' kind of note.

Dawn figured she should be mad, should be angry at Buffy for leaving her, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She had no idea what had gone down after Buffy left that night, but it must have been something horrible. Slayer things like that were always horrible.

Besides, Dawn was secretly impressed with the fact that Buffy had pulled it off. She almost admired her for getting away with it. Dawn had tried to run away once, but had only gotten as far as the next street before someone had called her mother, saying that her youngest was walking down the sidewalk dragging a suitcase as big as she was.

Buffy, on the other hand, had left town.

Which was the current topic of conversation in the living room—where she could have gone, what she could be doing, when she might be coming back, and most importantly, why she had left.

Obviously Buffy's note had said something about Mr. Giles. Mom had called him the next day, and he had been here several times since then, telling her the whole story. From the beginning of his acquaintance with Buffy as her Watcher, to the ordeal with her evil vampire boyfriend.

Mom had seemed to take it well. Or well enough. But Dawn could tell that she was upset. Upset at being kept in the dark for so long, upset over their argument.

Mr. Giles had said that there was no trace of any of them at the mansion (where the whole thing had apparently happened), but since the world hadn't ended, Buffy must have been successful. Whether she'd killed Angel or something else had happened, no one knew.

The something else being the re-ensouling of Angel, who had actually been _Angelus_ when he had tried to open hell, kill them all, and had abducted her. Uh-huh.

Presently Dawn came downstairs, acting like she just happened to be walking by. She slunk more or less unnoticed into the living room, in plain sight, but not speaking to draw any attention toward herself. It was relatively easy.

What with all the Buffy drama, no one had spared her a second glance in days unless she went out of her way to get their attention. Which was fine with her, for now at least. No nagging to do chores, no asking about homework. Mom was about twice as overprotective, but inside the house, Dawn was barely noticed.

Mr. Giles was talking about Angel again now, and that night. Mom was listening, her lips pressed into a line as her hand gripped a coffee cup.

Dawn settled in the wicker chair. 'That night,' they all called it. It was no longer 'the night Buffy went to fight Angelus,' or 'the night the world didn't end,' or 'the night Buffy ran away,' but just That Night.

With a shudder, she thought of her own night that night.

It had been some time before she'd realized exactly what the other vampire had saved her from. Even if he hadn't intended to, even if he had only done it to use her as a peace offering to Buffy, he had done it nonetheless.

It had been Mr. Giles, catching her in a rare moment alone one day as her mother fixed some tea, who had put the question to her. It had clearly flustered him to do so.

"Dawn, at the mansion, that night—"

"You were the one on the floor," she realized. She hadn't really met Buffy's Watcher until now, just seen him once or twice. "He tortured you."

"Yes." He looked down. "Angelus didn't—didn't hurt you, a-as well, did he?"

She knew in that instant what he meant behind the word 'hurt.' Mom had also asked if Angel had hurt her, but Mom hadn't meant it like that. Dawn suddenly realized what could have happened, what _would_ have happened if—

"No."

He took a breath, relief spreading over his face. "Ah, good. I was quite worried. He bragged about it, said—well, that's beside the point. I'm glad Buffy got there in time."

Dawn had said nothing.

In the wake of Buffy's leaving, certain things had been confused, others not dwelt on.

None of them knew about the deal that Buffy had made with the other vampire.

Well, Mom knew. Sort of. But Mom was suffering from information overload right now, and she was doing more listening than talking.

None of them knew that he had brought Dawn back that night.

Buffy. But Buffy had run off, and even she hadn't had the time to realize everything.

Dawn realized that no one else knew. Only she, Angel, and Spike—and the lunatic vampire, she supposed—knew the details of what had happened in the mansion that night.

She looked back at Mr. Giles, who was suggesting they start looking places that Buffy was familiar with, places she would feel safe.

Dawn knew they wouldn't find her. But she wondered where Buffy was.

To her surprise, she found herself wondering where Spike was.

She didn't care where Angel was.


	3. Chapter 3

Three months later, Buffy came back. Just like that.

Dawn had been standing in Buffy's room with her back to the door, looking in the closet. She'd taken to coming in here sometimes, looking at things, going through things. And Mom never came in here.

"Get out of my clothes."

She had whirled around to find Buffy in the room right behind her, standing with her arms crossed. But instead of the usual glare, she was smiling.

Dawn had hugged her and hit her, and things had gone back to normal. She herself hadn't found things that problematic. Buffy had been gone, and now she was back. She'd have to put Buffy's jewelry back in its box, but she enjoyed her sister being around again.

Everyone did, though things were somewhat strained.

Buffy's friends were slightly awkward. Her Watcher seemed worried. And Mom ran hot and cold. One day things were fine, but if anything went wrong she threw it in Buffy's face that she'd taken off.

Of course, it hadn't helped that there had been fights, lies, murder charges, and expulsion from school. Or that Mom had been afraid to leave the house in case Buffy called, or that Mr. Giles had been going around the country trying to find her, or that Mom had become increasingly annoyed with Mr. Giles because he'd known everything that she hadn't.

And Buffy had been in L.A. the whole time. The entire time. Not two hours away, working in a diner (so cliché) and living in some apartment on her own.

But everything had taken care of itself eventually, and things had slowly returned to normal.

Though personally, Dawn had been hoping that Buffy would've had to go to the private school, because Buffy in a uniform would be too funny.

* * *

.

.  
Things had been normal again. Well, Buffy thought, as normal as they ever were. She had gotten back into school, back into the swing of things with her friends, and even back into her mother's semi-good graces.

And she had finally admitted what had happened that night. Forced into revealing it by Giles, she'd told them how it had ended. How she had fought Angel, killed him—which they knew. But that he'd had his soul back and she had done it anyway because she'd had to.

Painful as it had been, she'd felt a weight lifted, and had finally been ready to close that door. Buffy had gone by the mansion that night and stood in the darkness, one last time.

Except now she was going there again.

Angel was back.

He had been feral and confused, and she'd chained him up. He'd gotten loose, and she had thought she would have to fight him again, but then he had finally seemed to see her. He'd sunk down to his knees and buried his face in her stomach. He might have cried. Then he had meekly followed her back to the mansion, and she'd watched over him as he fitfully slept.

Now she was back with blood for him. Buffy entered quietly, afraid he might have had another regression. As she approached, he looked up and she saw that he was himself. Angel glanced at her with an injured expression, before he wrapped his arms around her midsection and pressed his face into her shirt.

"Buffy, I'm so sorry."

It was the first thing he'd said to her since the 'Buffy' the earlier day.

Buffy moved her arms down, one pressing into the back of his head, the other running over his shoulder.

"Ssh, it's okay, Angel. It's all going to be okay."

"I'm so, so sorry."

"About the world-endage? About Giles and—" she swallowed, "—Miss Calendar?"

"Dawn," he said. "If I hadn't taken her—he wouldn't have—she wouldn't have been—God—"

She pulled back and looked down at him. "Angel, what are you talking about?"

Angel met her eyes, painfully. "Spike. When he killed Dawn."

For a moment, Buffy simply stared at him. Then a nervous laugh escaped.

"Buffy?"

"It's just—Angel, Dawn's fine. Alive, home, doing her schoolwork, hopefully."

"But—he said—"

She frowned. "What did Spike say?"

"When I…asked where she was, he said he—ate her."

"Spike brought her back. After you took her," Buffy said, stepping back. "That night. He took her from the mansion and brought her home."

"Why?"

"To convince me to team up with him, I guess. It worked."

A silence fell. Buffy looked at the floor and then at the container of blood.

"I'll come back tomorrow, Angel."

.

.

* * *

Angel was back.

No wonder Buffy had been weird for the last few weeks.

But apparently she wasn't the only one Buffy had kept secrets from. Buffy hadn't told anyone about Angel. But somehow, someone had seen him and the whole thing had come out. Oh, and Buffy had actually killed Angel that night the world didn't end. Or sent him to hell, however that worked. Dawn had guessed as much, but Buffy had never told her.

Dawn crossed her arms, pretending to be beyond annoyed at having to wait at the school while Buffy talked to her Watcher. But when the conversation shifted, well, Dawn figured she was already there, it wasn't like she had a choice about listening. Or creeping closer to the library office door. It was the only way she was able to find out anything.

She couldn't catch it all from behind the door, because Mr. Giles seemed to lower his voice the more upset he got. They weren't really arguing, but he was questioning her 'future intentions,' whatever that meant. Buffy insisted that she and Angel were 'just friends.' And Angel had a soul again.

The door handle moved, and Dawn jumped back to the counter, immediately flipping through a thick volume that was lying open.

"What's this, like Greek or something?" she muttered, feigning boredom.

"Er, yes actually." Mr. Giles slid the book out from under her. "And it's very old."

"Whatever." She looked at Buffy. "Can we go now?"

* * *

.

.

.

Spike took the last swig from the bottle, and then threw it out the window to break on the darkened highway. Bloody Dru. Bloody chaos demon.

He was headed nowhere, just as far away from them as he could get. Somehow he knew where he'd end up.

Bloody all of them.


	4. Chapter 4

A week later, Dawn was at the sink when Spike strolled into their kitchen.

Mom was on the phone talking to Buffy about colleges when he opened the back door like he lived there. "Hello, Joyce." He leaned against the frame, a lazy look on his face.

She frowned for a moment before she seemed to place him. "Spike." She gave him a surprised smile. "Are you looking for Buffy? She's not here, actually, she's—Buffy? Hello? Well, she was on the phone," she said, turning to hang it up.

"Don't need the Slayer." He walked in, slouching against the counter.

Dawn wondered what he was doing here. She had really never expected to see him again.

Spike took a seat on one of the stools and noticed her for the first time. "It's the bitty Buffy." She wasn't sure he even knew her name. He held his hand straight out at her, like older relatives did at family reunions.

Dawn slowly walked over, stopping at arm's length. Spike tilted his head at her and petted the top of her hair. "Much nicer than the full-sized one." He smiled that weird smile.

"Are you drunk?"

"Dawn!" Mom sounded shocked.

"He smells like it," she defended herself. Spike smelled like Buffy had the time that she'd come back from some party where she slayed a reptile thing. Only worse.

"Might've had a bottle or five," he admitted, dropping his hand. "Had a bite earlier to clear my head, though."

"Would you like something else?" Mom asked.

Spike smiled and ran his tongue over his teeth.

Dawn wondered if she remembered he was a vampire.

"Nah, I'm good."

"Some strong coffee? Or I was about to make Dawn some hot chocolate."

"Now that sounds right satisfying."

While her mother bustled around the kitchen, Dawn leaned by the end of the counter.

Spike grinned at her when she looked at him.

He _had_ saved her last time. But he was still a vampire, and self-admittedly not a good one. Though Dawn really didn't think that he'd be sitting here all nice and chatty if he were going to kill them.

But he also hadn't said why he was here. Drunk people must get distracted easily.

"You've got such pretty hair," Spike said. He reached out like he might touch it again, but closed his fingers in the air. Then he put his fist under his chin and leaned on the counter. "Dru liked girls with pretty hair," he sighed wistfully, staring blankly ahead.

He glanced back at her. "You remember Dru," he said offhandedly, like she and the insane vampire had gone to school together or something, instead of having been involved in a hostage situation.

"Yeah…" Dawn trailed off, unsure of what else to say.

Spike looked at her a moment more before his face twitched funnily.

Almost with horror, she realized he was about to cry.

He brought his hand up to his brow. "She left me," he moaned, his voice thick. "After everything I did for her, she just left…"

Mom turned around. "Oh, that's too bad."

Spike looked up, sniffing heavily. Dawn was thankful that he hadn't actually cried. "Yeah?"

"Of course. You must feel awful. How long ago was it?"

"Dunno, exactly. Few days. Took a bit to get back here."

"Do you want to talk about what happened?"

She took the kettle off the stove, and sat down on the other stool as Spike went on about finding Dru cheating on him with some demon in the park, and how he'd expected that they would get back together.

He paused and smiled in Dawn's direction. "You would've made up with me, right?"

"Um, sure," she said, hoping that was the correct answer. Because making up with evil/not evil vampire boyfriends was Buffy's area, not hers.

"Well," Mom said, "she sounds very unreasonable."

"She is, she's out of her mind," he said agreeably, making the 'crazy' gesture with one hand. "It's what I miss most about her," he confided.

Mom tried to start the 'different paths' speech that she gave Buffy after a breakup, but Spike cut her off, saying that his and Dru's love was eternal. Then he asked if she had any marshmallows.

Dawn took a handful of marshmallows before her mother sat back down. She ate them one by one, because putting them _in_ the chocolate was just like gross.

Mom was starting to reassure Spike again when the back door was flung open by another vampire.

Her mother didn't know Angel was back, of course. Or unevil. Whatever that meant, exactly.

She and Spike both stood up. Mom was angry and worried; Spike just looked amused. Dawn stayed where she was. She ate another marshmallow.

The whole thing was sort of funny, in a scary way. Mom threatened Angel, Angel threatened Spike, and Spike bounced around behind Mom and mocked Angel about not being invited.

"You get out of this house, or I will stake you myself!"

"You're a very bad man," Spike taunted.

"Joyce, you can't trust him. Invite me in." Then he noticed Dawn. She was always the last to get noticed. "Dawnie, invite me in."

Dawn crossed her arms. "Yeah, right." Honestly, if Spike hadn't killed them when he first walked in the door, he probably wasn't going to. That, and she still didn't like Angel.

Spike did a 'quotation' bite that Mom couldn't see, which really made Angel mad. "You touch her and I'll cut your head off."

"Yeah, you and what army?"

Cue Buffy.

She pushed Spike backward over the counter and invited Angel in, while Mom started in with the worried muttering and questions. Buffy and Angel held Spike down and she grabbed a wooden spoon. He shouted out Willow's name, which apparently meant something.

"You took Willow?" Buffy asked.

"You do me now, you'll never find the little witch."

"And Xander?"

"Him too."

Dawn looked at him. "You kidnapped Willow and Xander?"

"Just a little," he said, as Buffy said, "Quiet, Dawn."

Angel pulled Spike to his feet. "Where are they?"

He smirked and asked Angel about having a soul again. Spike really seemed to enjoy bugging Angel. Then he said that he was getting Willow to do some magic for him. "If she does my spell, I'll let them both go."

"Really?" Dawn asked.

"Sure, why not?" He shrugged.

"You're not famous for keeping your promises, Spike," Buffy said.

"Well, you and your great poof here want to tag along, that's fine. But you get in my way, and you kill your friends."

Then he turned and walked past them, going into the house.

Buffy didn't seem to notice at first. Then she spun and went after him. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Came for a book. Not leaving without it," Spike said, stalking down the hall like he owned it.

Buffy quickly skirted around him and cut him off at the stairs. "_I'll_ get the book." Then she frowned. "What book?"

Dawn spoke up. "The book with the spell in it. It's a love spell, right?"

Buffy crossed her arms and glared at Spike. "You're beyond pathetic, you know that? You kidnapped Willow to do a _love_ spell for you?"

Without waiting for a response, she rolled her eyes and started up the stairs.

Angel pushed past. "Dru must have left him," he said, smiling as he followed her up.

Spike glowered at the other vampire, before he clomped up the stairs behind them.

Dawn quickly trailed after Spike before Mom came out of the kitchen to prevent her.

He stopped and slouched against Buffy's doorframe, just inside the room. Dawn peeked past him and saw Buffy digging through the pile of stuff on her dresser, Angel hovering over her.

She started to squeeze around Spike, but his hand on her shoulder stopped her.

"Now now, outta their way. This takes any longer, I'll wear out my welcome."

"Consider yourself unwelcomed," Buffy snapped.

He grinned. "Your mum was right hospitable. So was this one." Spike pulled her to his side and tousled her hair.

Buffy seemed to notice her for the first time. "Dawn, get away from him, he's drunk. And a vampire," she finished lamely.

Dawn straightened her hair, but she didn't move. "I'm fine," she said, sticking her chin out.

"Dawn, come over here," Angel said.

"No." She unconsciously took a step back.

"See? The Little Bit likes me."

Buffy slammed a drawer closed. "This isn't a discussion! Away. Now."

"Geez, don't flip your lid." Dawn pushed away. Spike's hand slipped through her hair as she moved. She walked away from him, but purposefully didn't come to Buffy, and crossed her arms.

"Why does he even have an invite to the house?" Angel demanded.

"What's the matter, Peaches? Feeling left out?"

Spike meandered in after her, seemingly fascinated with the trinkets on the opposite wall.

"He can come in anytime and kill you in your sleep," Angel continued.

"Not from South America, he can't," Dawn said, at the same time Spike said, "That's more your style, innit?"

"I'll fix it," Buffy said. "Later. God, where is the stupid book? I swear I never saw her leave it here."

Dawn watched as Buffy crawled halfway under the bed.

Honestly, if Buffy was so concerned for her safety, she wouldn't disappear under the furniture while her little sister was near a vampire. Though Buffy was probably counting on Angel to protect her if Spike tried anything. That was a laugh.

Dawn felt a movement behind her, and noticed that Spike was standing at her back again. She shifted slightly, and he moved beside her like a shadow. She wasn't sure if he was doing it just to be annoying, if he was too drunk to realize he was doing it, or if he really did have some sneaky motive.

Angel noticed it, too. It was obvious what he thought.

"What's so interesting about her, Spike?" he growled, leaning in their direction.

"You thought she was interesting enough," he said, playing with the ends of her hair.

For a moment, there was a horrible silence.

"You were gonna kill her," Spike continued. "You were gonna—"

"Can we find the book already and go?" he snapped.

Dawn heard Spike give a wheezy laugh. But he didn't press the subject further.

Buffy suddenly stood up, seemingly oblivious to what had happened. "Got it," she said, waving the spell book. Then she glared at Dawn. "Why are you standing next to him again?"

"I'm not standing next to him, he's standing next to me."

"Ye-ah," Spike chimed in.

"Shut up, Spike," Buffy said. She grabbed him by the back of the coat. Dawn felt her hair slide though his fingers as Buffy pulled him away.

Dawn followed them out. Buffy shoved the book into Spike's hands as they went down the stairs. When they were at the bottom, she glared at him. "Let's go. Where are Willow and Xander?"

"Not so fast," he said, fishing in his pocket. "She needs these too."

Buffy snatched the paper from him.

Angel looked over her shoulder. "We can go by a magic shop."

"Now I've got to take him _shopping_?" Buffy asked with disbelief.

"No worries," Spike said. "I know a place we can get the stuff for free."

Buffy narrowed her eyes.

Spike shrugged. He glanced around the entryway, his eyes pausing on the living room. Dawn remembered listening from the stairs as he'd made the deal to help her sister take down Angel. Suddenly he frowned, muttering something about 'bloody crazy Dru.'

Then he looked up, where she was standing halfway down the stairs. He grinned at her. "See you, Bit."

"Hopefully never again," Buffy said brightly. She opened the door.

Dawn watched as he bounced on his heels and walked out into the night.


	5. Chapter 5

Buffy was in college now.

And Angel was gone.

Dawn really didn't care, but she felt bad for Buffy. There had been this weird tension between Buffy and Angel for a while, and it had ended with Angel leaving town. Like right after the final battle at Graduation.

Buffy was not much fun to be around, afterward. And she didn't want to talk about Angel at all.

Which was fine, because talking about Angel was not high on Dawn's list. She knew there was some sort of unspoken rule that little sisters either had to hate or have crushes on their big sisters' boyfriends, and she was definitely not crushing on Angel.

She wasn't crazy about him before the whole evil vampire thing, but afterward, could you blame her?

For starters, Angel had never apologized.

Oh, Buffy said he'd apologized when he had thought that she was dead, thought that Spike had killed her. Buffy told the story later. And it was kind of funny, in a morbid sort of way.

However, Angel had never apologized for taking her, and of course never brought up anything that had happened. It was the Thing They Did Not Speak Of. Everyone just sort of pretended the whole Angelus thing was done by a completely different person. At least after the whole fallout of him being back had passed.

With Dawn herself, Angel had just tried to make small talk, asking her about school and such when he saw her.

So lame.

So no, she really wasn't missing Angel.

* * *

Spike was back, apparently.

Dawn had heard them talking about his latest plot, and how Buffy had beaten him. It had sounded like he'd been in a really bad mood, though, so probably better that she hadn't run across him this time.

Of course, it also seemed that Spike had a tendency to show up when you weren't expecting him.

It was around midnight when Dawn heard Buffy's window open. She hadn't gone to sleep yet, having smuggled a flashlight into her room so she could finish the latest book of her favorite series. Mom was probably long asleep by now, but Dawn had remained under the covers with her light and her book, just in case.

The sound of Buffy's window opening was also familiar to her; she used to hear it all the time before Mom knew about the Slaying. Mom was also a heavy sleeper, so lucky for Buffy.

Dawn, being awake and being done with her book, decided to go see what Buffy had come back for so late. She got out of bed and crept down the hall, pausing when she was in front of Buffy's open door.

Why didn't Buffy have the lights on?

It was then that she saw him—a flash of white hair in the moonlight.

Spike was moving around the edges of Buffy's room, sifting through her things. Closing a drawer, he opened another one, digging through the contents and dropping half of them on the floor. Then he started on the next one.

Suddenly he turned, pausing. "Oh, it's you." Frowning, he seemed to consider her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, stepping into the room slightly.

"Looting," he said flatly, continuing to dig through Buffy's desk.

"You're looking for the gem, aren't you?"

Spike stopped, his eyes narrowing as he slowly turned toward her. "Well, don't you have things figured out?"

Dawn shrugged, like it wasn't important. "I heard them talking. But Buffy lives at the dorms now, anyway."

"Yeah, figured that."

"She didn't leave much here. Mom was even using her room for storage until she got mad."

"That so?" Bored, he turned back to the desk.

"She didn't bring it back here, either."

Spike abandoned the drawer. "Oh well," he said, a bit too casually. "Didn't really figure she'd leave it laying about. Had to check, though. Good thing she never got around to revoking that invitation."

Then he grinned, his eyes slowly settling on her. "I liked Plan B better anyway."

"What's Plan B?" Dawn asked, suddenly feeling a little nervous.

Spike crossed the room in two strides and grabbed her by the arm. He started dragging her toward the window.

"Is kidnapping all you vampires know how to do?" she asked, even as he pulled her to him.

"Relax. Won't even hurt you."

While one part of her mind said to scream before he pulled her out the window, the other said it would be better to keep talking to him. That, and she doubted Mom would really be much help.

"What do you—?"

"I want my ring." He gave her a shake. "Bet she'll trade you for it."

"Probably," Dawn agreed. "But she doesn't have it."

Spike went deathly still, freezing by the window ledge. Then he yanked her in front of him, looming over her.

"Here, you mean?"

She gave a miniscule shake of her head. "She doesn't have it all."

His voice dropped dangerously low. "What do you mean, she doesn't have it at all?"

Dawn tried to lean back, but he wouldn't let her. "She gave it to Oz."

"Who the bloody hell is Oz?"

"He—he's—" His grip on her was tightening, and she had the feeling that 'Willow's boyfriend' wasn't really the answer he was looking for. "—he's going to L.A. and taking it to Angel."

There was a moment when she wondered if he even heard her at all. He didn't seem to have a reaction.

Then he clenched his teeth. "Angel?" he repeated.

Dawn nodded.

An instant later, he let go of her. She fell to the floor without him holding on to her, having been off balance as she had leaned backward.

Spike gave an exasperated growl, spinning around and kicking the dresser. He paced once, muttering, "Dammit. Perfect, just perfect." When he turned, he seemed to remember that she was still there.

Suddenly he was next to her, his right foot stomping down by her side. He grabbed the front of her shirt, hauling her halfway up off the carpet and causing her to dangle somewhat as he leaned over her. "If you tell _anyone_ I was here—"

"I won't. I swear I won't," she said, panic creeping into her voice just a bit. Then she collected herself. "Besides, what do I care about Angel?" She tried to look aloof from her awkward position.

Unexpectedly, he laughed. "Right."

Then he helped her up, like he hadn't come to kidnap her to get a magic ring back from Buffy.

Dawn took a step away. "So…are you going to L.A.?"

"Yeah… I think me and the old man have some catching up to do."

He seemed to study her for a moment and then patted her on the head.

"No hard feelings, Little Bit? Was nothing personal."

Huh? Oh right, the kidnapping plan. Was this like a vampire apology?

"Sure. Whatever." She shrugged.

He slid out the window, and then she was alone.

Dawn stood in the room a moment, before she turned on the lights and carefully put all of Buffy's things back where they had been. Mainly so she didn't get blamed for rifling through them.

* * *

She had never really wondered if Spike's trip to L.A. was successful. Dawn might not like Angel, but if he had the ring, she doubted he was going to hand it over to Spike just like that. So she didn't really worry about it.

At any rate, she hadn't expected to hear a few weeks later that Spike was tied up at Giles's. She'd heard Buffy talking to Willow about it.

"What do you mean?" Dawn had asked.

Buffy had rolled her eyes, like the whole thing was just a large annoyance. "Oh, he showed up with some sob story about escaping from the military and not being able to kill people anymore. But he might have information, so we've got him tied up for now."

In fact, Buffy had considered Spike so unimportant that she hadn't given a second thought to dragging Dawn to Giles's the day she had to pick her up from school.

Dawn had looked around the apartment, but had seen no sign of Spike. Then she heard him yelling some remark at Buffy.

"Be quiet, Spike!" Buffy shouted back. "You'll get blood later."

He was in the bathroom.

Dawn looked around the corner when no one was watching her and saw him sitting in the bathtub. He was chained, she realized.

He looked like he was about to yell again, before he closed his mouth. "Oh. It's you."

"So I guess you didn't get the ring."

"No, I didn't get the bloody ring. Think I'd be chained up if I'd gotten the bloody ring?"

"I don't know."

She wondered why he'd come to Buffy at all. Then she thought that maybe he hadn't had anywhere else to go. Which was sort of sad, in a way.

"Dawn, do come away from there," Giles said, noticing where she was standing.

She shrugged, walking into the kitchen. Xander and Anya came in shortly afterward, and Dawn smiled at Xander as he said hello to her. Willow was still upset over Oz and apparently hadn't made it tonight.

Buffy seemed to remember Dawn again and pointed to the dining room table. "You. Homework."

"I want to eat," she complained, pointing to her half-finished fast food.

"Eat while you do homework."

"What are you going to do?"

"Research," Xander said. "So you see, no one is really having fun."

They settled in, Dawn feeling like she was banished to the far end of the apartment. They were all happily ignoring her while they did their oh-so-important research.

She found her thoughts drifting back to Spike. Who kept a vampire in the bathroom? It was just weird.

And besides, anything was better than doing math.

She managed to slip away—which was definitely a skill, she thought proudly, what with it being such a small apartment—while Buffy and Giles were looking at books and Xander and Anya were making lovey-dovey faces at each other.

Spike was still in the bathtub, of course. He looked like he was trying to sleep, though he raised his head when she came in.

"What?" he asked, sounding deflated. "Unless you're here with booze, blood, or to turn the telly on, just sod off."

He actually looked sort of miserable, and she found herself feeling a bit sorry for him. She supposed it couldn't be fun, having to depend on people who hated you for every little thing.

"I just thought you might be bored. I'm bored," she added.

"Yeah, must be tough, with the freedom and all." Then he seemed to consider. He tilted his head, giving her a smile. "Want to use that freedom? The Watcher has blood in the fridge, but he hasn't given me any."

Dawn shifted. "I don't know… I don't think Buffy will like it if I get you blood. Do you eat people food?"

"Tastes okay, some of it. Better than nothing."

"I've got some curly fries from Arby's," she offered.

Spike paused. "Yeah, all right."

Dawn went to the table to get the fries. No one had even noticed she'd been gone. Figures.

She quietly went back in the bathroom and handed the cardboard container to Spike.

"You're alright, Little Bit," he said. He popped several fries in his mouth.

"Um, thanks." She paused, trying to think of something to talk about. She already knew he hadn't gotten the ring, and Buffy had said he was whining about Drusilla leaving him again. That was pretty much the extent of her encounters with him. Except—

"I never thanked you, you know, for saving me from Angel," she said, sitting down against the opposite wall.

"Not like I planned to."

"I know. But you still did."

He shrugged, chains rattling slightly. "You were handy." Spike looked uninterested as he ate more French fries.

"You could have made a deal with Buffy without me."

"S'pose. Looked good, though, me bringing back her little pet."

"I guess. But still, you never tried to kill me."

"You were just a kid." He looked at her crossways. "Might kill you now. You know, if I could."

"Uh-huh." Dawn raised an eyebrow, not impressed. He could have killed her when he'd come looking for the ring.

"Not like it matters. Can't bite anything."

"Then why are you all tied up?" she asked.

"They think I'm having them on. Like I'd do this for bloody kicks."

"Yeah, Buffy never believes anything I say, either. But anyway, thanks, you know, for saving me from Angel."

He grinned and tilted his head at her. "See, the rest of them would've said Angelus. You said Angel."

"Yeah. Whatever. It's all the same, isn't it?"

"Is it?"

"I don't know," she said. "Probably not. But I never liked him, even before. He was lame."

"Bloody stupid," Spike agreed.

"Dawn!" Buffy's voice suddenly came from the next room. A moment later she appeared in the doorway. "What are you doing?" she asked, hands on her hips.

"Just talking."

"You don't 'talk' to Spike. You don't have anything to do with Spike." Her eyes narrowed. "What's he got?"

"Nothing. Geez. Just my fries."

Buffy pulled Dawn up, ushering her away. "Don't get that close to him. You don't know what he might do."

"Yeah, I might kill her with a French fry," Spike said.

"Shut up. Dawn, go finish your homework."

"But—"

"I mean it. Now."

"Fine," she huffed.

"C'mon, Slayer, what's a bloke gotta do to get something to eat around here? I've been quiet while you have your little white hat get together."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Fine already."

She dragged Dawn out of the bathroom, directing her toward the table and her math books. Then she went and sat back down on the couch. "Giles, you need to go feed Spike."

He took off his glasses. "Buffy, one would think that you have some sort of aversion to blood."

"One would think," she echoed. "I went to the butcher's to get it, can't you do it?"

"I'll do it," Dawn said.

"No," Buffy said, as Giles said, "Absolutely not."

"Anyway," she continued, "you already gave him your French fries. Which you should _not_ have done."

"Hey, there's an idea," Xander said. "Can vampires live off table scraps?"

"I heard that!" Spike yelled.

Dawn shook her head slightly as she looked back at her math. She didn't see what the big deal was. If Spike really couldn't bite people, it made sense that they should let him out already. Then they wouldn't have to worry about doing anything.

But since when did grownups make sense?

—_the end_

_A/N: I suppose I could have kept going with this, but this is where the story wanted to end. I doubt Dawn saw Spike much in season 4 after he left Giles's. I figure that Something Blue happened the day after this, but this was where I'd planned to stop, since it closed the story thread that was started when Spike inadvertenly saved her from Angelus in the first chapter. I hope everyone enjoyed it!_


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